Automatic railway signal device.



R. A. RUTHERFURD.

AUTOMATIC RAILWAY SIGNAL DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED DEC. 26. 191-3.

1,204,689. Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

Application filed December 26, 1913. Serial No. 808,637.

'1 '0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT A. RUTHER- FURD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the town of Lyme, county of New London, and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvementin Automatic Railroad Signal Devices, of which the following is a description in such full, clear, and exact terms as to enable any one skilled in the art to which it pertains to make, construct, and use the same.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an audible signal such as a gun in connection with a visual semaphore, automatically operated by the train, so that those in the engine and train may, by sound, determine thevarious positions of the semaphore, to the end that the signal will be effective, in dark or cloudy weather when the semaphore cannot be seen.

Other objects will appear from the subjoined specification and claims.

To accomplish these ends I utilize a repeating gun, which is set to fire a blank cartridge, close in front of the engine of a train, from one to several successive times, in accordance with the several positions in which a semaphore signal is set. The gun is placed near the track, and also near the semaphore, and by means of operating connections between the same and a track-trip, which is arranged to be operated by the train, the gun is fired to give an audible signal.

The firing mechanism of the gun is positioned by means of connections between it and the semaphore, and the construction is such that the gun will fire once, twice, or three times, as maybe desired by the train running ,past the danger signals, and the construction is such that it will not fire again until the danger signal has been placed. to safety and back again to danger.

Referring to the drawings, in which corresponding reference characters indicate the same parts in the several views, Figure- 1 is a view in cross-section showing the tracktrip in detail, and the general arrangement of the gun signal. Fig. 2 is a plan view showing cable connections, between the track trip and signals. Fig. 3 is a detail of the track-trip; Fig. 4 is a detail of the gun or audible signal operating mechanism; Fig. 5 is a section on line 55 of Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is also a detail of the gun or audible signal operating mechanism; Fig. 7 is a section on line 77 of Fig. 6.

A represents the track of a railroad; B the post upon which the visual semaphore C and gun 1) are mounted; C is a semaphore arm of the usual construction, and operated in the ordinary way from a railroad towerhouse. The semaphore arm is pivoted at 11, and extending in the opposite direction is the arm 12, connected to which by a sliding pivot is the rod 13, which is pivoted at its lower end also by a sliding pivot 14 to an arm 15, which arm is pivoted at 16.

' D represents the repeating gun, suitably mounted upon the signal post B in brackets 20. Connected to the firing magazine of the gun is a rod 21 pivotally connected by a sliding pivot 21 to an arm 22 of bell crank lever, pivoted at 24 to a fixed arm 23 on the gun support.

25 is the lower arm of the bell crank lever, to which is attached a friction roller 26.

Mounted in suitable brackets 27, 27' upon the signal post, is a pivot rod, 28, slidably mounted upon said rod 28 is a frame 29 having guide-ways 30, in the opposite arms thereof in which are mounted the plate 31, having a series of detents 32, 32, 32", upon its operating surface Pivotally attached to the plate 31 is a bell crank lever 33, which is pivoted at 34. An arm of this lever 35 extends inward, upon which rests the end of the rod 13. Attached to the upper 'arm of the bracket which supports the plate 31 is a line or cord 40 passing around the pulley 41, and extending over the same, at the end of which line is a'weight 42. To the lower arm of the bracket is secured a line or cord 43, which passes under pulleys 44 and 44, and is attached to the end of the pivoted lever 45. The arm 46 of the lever engages between the fingers 48 of an arm 49 of a bell crank lever pivoted at 50. The upper arm 51 of this bell crank lever is the operative arm of the track detent. Mounted in suitable bearings 60, between the tracks, is a pivot rod 61, to which is pivoted the bell crank lever 50, 51. This bell crank lever is also slidable on the rod 61, and is held in its outer and inoperative position by a spiral spring 62, one end of which abuts against one of the fixed bearings 60, and the other end of which abuts against the lever.

Upon the plate 31 are a series of notches 7O engaged by a spring pawl 71 to hold the cured to a pin 80 on the limb 51 of the tracktrip is a cord or line 83, which passes around a pulley 84 and under a pulley 85, and connected at its other end to the semaphore arm at 86. The arrangement is such that when the semaphore arm is in its lower or clear position, the cord 83 is slackened and the spring 62 is permitted to extend itself and hold the track-trip here out of operative position and away from engagement with the lever 45, 47. When the semaphore is in any one of the other danger positions, thecord pulls the track-trip to a position of engagement with the lever arm 4:6, so that it will operate the same when struck by a projec'tion provided for that purpose at some suitable point on the engine or train.

The operation of the mechanism is as follows: When the train passes by the sig nal post, any suitable part of the train strikes the track-trip and rocks the same, which lowers its outer arm a9; and if the semaphore is in danger position as above described, thereby raising the arm 45 of the operating lever, this arm being connected by the cord or line 43, moves the frame carrying the fire control plate to a selected position. The firing plate is so arranged that the detents therein pass under the roller of the bell crank lever to operate the same, to move the firing pin to fire the gun. The gun will be fired either once, twice, or three times, in accordance with the position of the control plate in the frame holding the same. The position of this plate, is in accordance with the position of the semaphore, being moved through the rod connected to the semaphore and to the lever arm. When this rod is moved either up or down, it will move the plate so that the selected number of detents, (either one detent, two detents, or

three detents) will be positioned opposite the roller on the lower arm of the bell crank lever, which bell crank lever is pivotally connected to the firing pin. By reason of the connections between the semaphore and the controlling plate of the firing mechanism, the gun will not be fired again until the danger signal has been placed to safety and back again to danger. The semaphore is shown in clear position in Fig. 4, and in dotted lines in the other three positions in which it may be set. The number of shots which will be fired is regulated or controlled by the position of the semaphore. The gun mechanism is not set to fire when the semaphore is in the lower position shown in full lines. The gun mechanism is set to fire one shot, indicating that the'tra'i'n' should run slowly, when the semaphore is placed in the second position, shown in the dotted line,

Copies "of this patent maybe obtained for five centseach, by? addressing the Commissioner of Yatents, 3

and two shots when in the third position. When in the horizontal dotted line, three shots will be fired, to signal the train to stop.

I have illustrated and described the embodiment of the invention which I at present believe to be the one best subserving the several objects which I have in view. It nevertheless should be understood that the illustrations and description are merely exemplary, and that changes may be made in the details thereof, and also that the invention may be otherwise and variously embodied without departing from its spirit or its scope as defined in the subjoined claims.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a rail-road signal, a repeating gun, a firing "mechanism therefor, a semaphore, an adjustable controller for the firing mechanism, and connections between the semaphore and the controller to set the same in selective firing position.

2. In a rail-road signal device, a repeating gun, a semaphore, a selecting means for controlling the number of times the gun is to fire, means between the semaphore and the controlling means to set the same in operative position, means adjacent the track to be operated by the train, and connections between the latter and the controlling means to operate the firing mechanism a given number of times.

3. In a rail-road signal, a semaphore, a repeating gun, a track-trip, a selective controller, means between the semaphore and the controller to regulate its position, operating means between the trip and the controller to fire the gun.

a. In a rail-road signal device, a repeating gun provided with firing mechanism, a controller, moved into one position, to control the number of gun fires and moved in another direction to operate the firing mechanism for the purpose described.

In a rail-road signal device, a semaphore, a gun, controlling means for the gun to control the number of gun fires, and a track-trip, connection between the semaphore and track-trip to place the track-trip in and out of operative position, connections between the semaphore and gun controlling means, to control the gun fires, and connections between the track-trip and the gun for firing the gun.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand at the city, county and State of New York, this 22nd day of December, 1913.

ROBERT A. RUTHERFURD. ln presence of'- ISABEL R. Eleni-inns," JOHN J. 'RANAGAN';

Washington, D. 0. 

